Want some deep smokey BBQ flavor without shelling out hundreds for a ceramic smoker? For $50 worth of parts and a trip to the hardware store, you can build your own.

One of the keys to good BBQ is low temperatures over extended periods of time. High-end smokers are made of ceramic to help keep the heat in while cheap ones are made of heat-shedding metal. You can get the heat-retaining properties of the higher end models by using terracotta pots as the body of your DIY cooker. Check out the video below of Alton Brown building and using a $50 smoker:

If you're intrigued but want more detail than is found in the video, check out the link below. An Alton Brown fan built their own and detailed the process including where they found the parts and which parts worked best.

Have experience with DIY BBQ contraptions? Let's hear about it in the comments.